Device for dispensing a fluid with closure system

ABSTRACT

A dispenser device which has a pumping device, an ejection nozzle incorporating a dispensing orifice, an actuator for activating the dispenser such as a pusher, and a closure system which enables the dispenser device to be closed, thereby avoiding problems such as contamination or drying out of the dispensing substance. The closure system contains a closure element that is resiliently deformable to go between a closed position in which it hermetically closes the dispensing orifice, and an open position in which it opens the dispensing orifice. When the dispensing device is actuated, the closure element is deformed into its open position by a member solid with the ejection nozzle or the ejection nozzle, and the closure element returns resiliently into its closed position after the dispensing device has been actuated.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a dispenser device for dispensing afluid, and more particularly, the present invention relates to such adispenser device that includes a closure system actuated automaticallywhenever the dispenser device is actuated.

The closure system of the present invention is applicable to alldispenser devices for dispensing fluids, and in particular to any suchdispenser device including a pump or a valve connected to a tank andactuated by actuating means such as a pusher.

In dispenser devices for dispensing fluids or in spray dispenserdevices, and particularly in devices containing substances such asmedicines, one of the most complicated problems to be solved is that ofavoiding the risk of at least some of the fluid that is to be dispensedbecoming contaminated.

In general, such a device includes a tank containing the fluid, and adispenser member, such as, for example, a pump, inside which somequantity of fluid always remains present after each dispensingoperation. That quantity of fluid remains in contact with the outsideenvironment via the dispensing orifice or the ejection nozzle of thedispenser member, and it can thus easily be subjected to drying and/orcontamination, which gives rise to the following undesirableconsequences:

in the event of contamination, e.g. with bacteria, the contaminatedfluid is dispensed to the user the next time the device is actuated,which is obviously dangerous to the user's health; in addition, thecontamination can, in some cases, extend to the entire tank of fluid,resulting in an increased health risk; and

in the event of drying, in addition to highly probable contamination,there is also a risk that the dispensing orifice of the dispenser memberclogging up; this is very frequent in particular in spray dispenserdevices in which the fluid passageways are usually very small.

To overcome that problem, it has been proposed to use preservativeagents mixed with the fluid to be dispensed. Unfortunately, whenmedication is to be dispensed, that solution often gives rise to sideeffects such as allergy problems.

To avoid that, “closure systems” have been developed in recent years soas to provide a dispenser device whose dispensing orifice can be closedin airtight manner.

Such systems do indeed solve the problem of the substance remaining inthe dispenser member drying out and/or becoming contaminated.Unfortunately, they generally give rise to considerable new problems, inparticular in spray applications. Such a closure system is generallyactuated, i.e. opened, by means of the pressure generated by the pumpwhen the device is actuated. That gives rise to the following adverseconsequences:

the closure member is an integral part of the spray-producing portionwhich, in that type of device, must be made very accurately, and mustnot give rise to any limitation on the free flow of the fluid; since theclosure member is an integral part of said portion, it constitutes sucha limitation;

the closure member requires a certain amount of pressure in order toopen, but before the device is used for the first time, most spray pumpsare not capable of generating the required pressure; each pump isprovided with a metering chamber which is also the pump chamber, andsaid chamber is empty when the device has not yet been used, i.e. itcontains only air or an inert gas; as a result, each spray device usingsuch a pump needs to be primed, which constitutes in actuating thedevice one or more times to expel the air from the chamber of the pumpand to replace it with the liquid to be dispensed; the problem thenencountered is that, when the pump is actuated on a gas, the pressuregenerated is significantly lower than the pressure obtained by pumping aliquid, so the pressure generated during priming is generally notsufficient to open the closure member; as a result, the air is notexpelled and the pump is not primed so that no spray can be dispensed.

Documents EP-0 031 123 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,336,000 disclose closuresystems in which the closure member is opened mechanically,independently of the pressure created by the substance. However, thoseclosure members present the same problems concerning spray applicationssince they form the end of the fluid flow portion and they prevent thefluid from flowing freely.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a closure system for adispenser device for dispensing a fluid, which system does not sufferfrom the above-mentioned drawbacks.

An object of the present invention is thus to provide a closure systemthat enables the dispenser device for dispensing a fluid to be closedaccurately, thereby avoiding any contamination and/or drying out of thesubstance at the dispensing orifice.

Another object of the invention is to provide a closure system that isopened automatically on actuating the dispenser device for dispensing afluid.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a closure systemthat is completely separate from that portion of the dispenser memberthrough which the fluid flows, and that therefore does not interferewith the spray generation and/or with the necessary priming of thedevice.

The present invention thus provides a dispenser device for dispensing afluid, the dispenser device comprising a dispenser member such as apump, ejection means such as an ejection nozzle incorporating adispensing orifice, actuating means such as a pusher, and a closuresystem comprising a closure element that is resiliently deformable to gobetween a closed position in which it closes the dispensing orificehermetically, and an open position in which it opens the dispensingorifice, said dispenser device being characterized in that said pushercan be displaced a little relative to said ejection nozzle, and in thatthe closure element is disposed between said pusher and said ejectionnozzle so that, when the dispensing device is actuated, the closureelement is deformed into its open position by said ejection nozzle or bya memer solid with said ejection nozzle, said closure element returningresiliently into its closed position after the dispensing device hasbeen actuated.

Advantageously, the closure element is provided with a deformableclosure wall which closes the dispensing orifice, said closure wallbeing provided with opening means which open when the closure element isin the open position.

Preferably, the opening means include a slit which opens when thedispenser device is actuated.

Preferably, said closure wall is provided with a substantially concavebottom surface which, in the closed position, is in contact with aconvex top surface of the member solid with the dispenser device.

Advantageously, said slit is defined by two edges which move apartduring opening of the slit in a manner such as to form a truncated conewhen the closure element is in the open position, the small-diameterportion of said truncated cone being defined by the bottom ends of saidedges, which ends are situated in the vicinity of the dispensingorifice, so that when the slit closes again, the two edges firstly comeinto mutual contact at said bottom ends, expelling to the outside anysubstance remaining in the truncated cone after the dispenser device hasbeen actuated.

Advantageously, while the slit is closing again, said bottom ends of thetwo edges scrape said convex top surface of the member that is solidwith the dispenser member, thereby removing any substance remaining inthis place after the dispenser device has been actuated.

Advantageously, said closure element comprises a cylindrical sleevedisposed around and/or fixed to said ejection nozzle, and a deformableclosure wall forming an end wall of said sleeve, said closure wall beingprovided with a slit disposed facing the dispensing orifice, which slitopens whenever the device is actuated.

Preferably, when the closure element is in the open position, saidsleeve is in a deformed state such that the closure element is urgedresiliently into its closure position.

In another embodiment of the invention, the closure element isimplemented in the form of a disk provided with a hole which is closedin the closed position, and which opens to pass a member solid with thedispenser device whenever said dispenser device is actuated.

Advantageously, said closure element is made of an elastomer, such as abutyl rubber.

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention appearfrom the following detailed description given by way of non-limitingexample and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic vertical section view of a dispenser device fordispensing a fluid, the device incorporating a closure system of thepresent invention, shown in its closed position;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to the FIG. 1 view, showing the closure systemin its open position;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged diagrammatic vertical section view of the closuresystem of the present invention, shown in the closed position;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are diagrammatic vertical section views of the closuresystem of the invention, respectively in the closed position and in theopen position; and

FIGS. 6 and 7 are diagrammatic plan views of the closure element of theclosure system of the present invention, respectively in the closedposition and in the open position.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Although the closure system of the present invention is applicable toany type of dispenser device for dispensing a fluid, the presentdescription is given with reference to a spray device including a pumpactuated by a pusher.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the dispenser device for dispensing a fluidincludes a pump 20 which may be any standard pump and which is thereforenot described in greater detail below, said pump being connected firstlyto a fluid tank (not shown) and secondly to a dispensing orifice 8 viaan expulsion channel 2 and 5. The pump is actuated by actuating meanssuch as a pusher 1 which, together with the outlet portion of theexpulsion channel 2, define a dispensing head. As shown in particular inFIGS. 1, 2, and 3, the head of the spray dispenser device is subdividedinto two main components, namely a body 1 solid with the pusher, and anejection nozzle 3. In a standard spray dispenser device, the nozzle isusually made integrally with said body. These two components areseparated to enable a closure element 4 to be interposed between them,i.e. between the body 1 of the dispensing head and the ejection nozzle3. As is common, a spray jet-forming insert 2 whose function is toreduce dead volume and to create the channel shape suitable forobtaining good spraying, is inserted by being pushed into the ejectionnozzle element 3, and thus forms the end of the expulsion channel, theother end of the insert being disposed on the outlet tube 5 of the pump20. Naturally, the closure system of the present invention also operateswith a dispensing head that is not provided with an ejection nozzleincorporating a spray jet. It is necessary merely to be possible for theclosure element 4 to be disposed between the body 1 and a member solidwith the pump, provided that said member can move relative to said body1, as described below.

The unit comprising the ejection nozzle 3 and the insert 2 is mounted inthe body 1 so that it can slide in said body 1 over a limited stroke,and the unit is prevented from being accidently separated from said body1 in any suitable manner, in particular by snap-fastening means.

The closure element 4 is preferably made of a suitable elastomer, suchas a butyl rubber which is mounted in airtight manner on the ejectionnozzle 3. The closure element 4 preferably comprises a tubular sleeveportion 40 which is terminated at one end by a closure wall 41 formingan end wall for said sleeve 40. Advantageously, said sleeve portion 40is mounted and/or fixed around said ejection nozzle 3, advantageously bysnap-fastening type means 42, and said closure wall 41 covers thedispensing orifice 8 of the device and closes it in airtight manner. Theclosure wall 41 of said closure element 4 is provided with opening means6, advantageously implemented in the form of a slit which is disposedfacing said dispensing orifice 8. When the closure element 4 is in theclosed position, the slit is held closed in airtight manner so as toprevent any substance remaining in or in the vicinity of the dispensingorifice 8 after the dispenser device has been actuated from beingcontaminated and/or from drying out. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, theclosure element 4 is held at the periphery of its closure wall 41 by arib 11 in the body 1, which rib co-operates with a corresponding grooveprovided in said closure wall 41. When the closure element is in theclosed position, this advantageous characteristic makes it possible fora radial force to be exerted on said closure wall 41, so that the slit 6is held closed in airtight manner in said closure position.

Advantageously said slit 6 is defined in the closure wall 41 by twoedges 61, 62 (shown in FIGS. 5 and 7) which come into airtight contactwith each other when the closure element 4 is in the closed position. Inaddition, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, the sleeve 40 ofthe closure element 4 may be implemented in a manner such that it isdeformable. Thus, when the closure element 4 is in its open position, bydeforming, the sleeve 40 urges the closure element towards its closureposition, thereby returning the closure-element to its closed positionafter the device has been actuated.

The closure system of the present invention operates as follows.

As described above, when the dispenser device for dispensing a fluid isnot actuated, the closure element closes the dispensing orifice 8 of thepump in airtight manner, so as to prevent any contamination and/ordrying out of the substance remaining in the pump. On actuating thedevice, i.e. when a pressure is exerted by the user on the pusher 1,said pressure, which is exerted downwards as shown in the figures,causes the body and the unit comprising the ejection nozzle 3 and theinsert 2 to move relative to each other. For this purpose, the sleeve 40of the closure element 4 is resiliently deformed and the ejection nozzlesimultaneously deforms the closure wall 41 by opening the slit 6upwards, as shown in FIGS. 2, 5, and 7. This is achieved by means of theresistance of the pump device 20 to deformation being greater than theresistance to deformation of the sleeve 40 of the closure element 4.Thus, on actuating the spray dispenser device, firstly the unitcomprising the ejection nozzle 3 and the insert 2 is displaced relativeto the body 1, and therefore the sleeve 40 of the closure element isdeformed. As a result, the slit 6 is opened by said ejection nozzle 3which deforms the closure wall 41 at the slit 6, while the peripheraledge of said closure wall is advantageously held by the rib 11 in thebody 1. Advantageously, the body 1 and the unit comprising the nozzle 3and the insert 2 continue to move relative to each other until abutmentmeans, such as a shoulder, prevent any further relative movement. It isonly then that the force exerted by the user on the pusher 1 istransmitted to the pump device in order to actuate it. Thus, thesubstance contained in the tank is ejected by the pump only after theclosure element 4 has been fully opened, the opening being achievedmechanically by means of the ejection nozzle 3 in the example shown inthe figures. Naturally, such mechanical opening may also be achieved bya one-piece portion forming the ejection channel of the pump if thedevice is not provided with an ejection nozzle.

At the end of device actuation, when the pusher 1 is released by theuser, the assembly formed by the pusher 1 and by the unit comprising theejection nozzle 3 and the insert 2 is returned to its initial positionby the return spring of the pump, and because of the spring actionexerted by the sleeve 40 of the deformed closure element. As a result,the closure element 4 returns to its closed position in which the sleeve40 is exactly cylindrical and the slit 6 is closed hermetically.

An advantageous characteristic of the invention is obtained by the factthat the opening means are implemented in the form of a slit in theclosure wall 41 of the closure element 4. Thus, this slit is defined, asdescribed above, by two edges 61 and 62 which are in airtight contactwith each other when the closure element 4 is in the closed position,and which open under the effect of the body 1 and the unit comprisingthe ejection nozzle 3 and the insert 2 moving relative to each other,during actuation. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, when the closure element 4is in the open position, the slit 6 opens such that the edges 61 and 62define a truncated cone with the small-diameter portion of saidtruncated cone being situated at the bottom ends (as shown in thefigures) of said edges 61, 62, which ends are situated in the vicinityof the dispensing orifice 8 of the device. Therefore, when the closureelement 4 returns from its open position to its closed position, afterthe device has been actuated, the edges 61, 62 come into contact witheach other firstly at their bottom ends, and then the slit 6 closesprogressively over the entire height of said edges, i.e. over thethickness of the closure wall 41. Thus, any substance remaining insidesaid truncated cone after the device has been actuated is driven out ofthe device, thereby further limiting the risks of contamination and/orof drying out at this level. In order to guarantee maximum effectivenessfor these characteristics, it is advantageous for provision to be madefor the closure wall 41 to be arcuate. Thus, when the closure element isin the closed position, a compression force is established that acts toclose the dispensing orifice 8 in airtight manner. A particularlyadvantageous arcuate shape is shown in FIG. 3. In this embodiment, theinside surface of the closure wall 41 is concave and, in the closedposition, it is in intimate contact with the top surface of the nozzle3, which is convex. Similarly, the outside surface (i.e. the top surfaceas shown in FIG. 3) of the closure wall 41 is also concave. Thisparticular dual concave shape of the closure wall 41, together with therib 11 in the body 1, which rib bears against a corresponding grooveprovided in the periphery of said wall 41, offers the followingadvantages:

in the closed position, the closure wall 41 abuts firstly against theconvex surface of the nozzle 3, and secondly against the peripheral rib11 in the body 1; therefore a substantially radial force is created thaturges the two edges 61, 62 of the slit 6 into contact with each other;similarly, any slight accidental stress on the pusher 1, e.g. duringtransport, increases this compression force and thus prevents the slit 6from opening accidentally; naturally, this applies only if the stress onthe pusher 1 is lower than the resistance to deformation of the sleeve40 of the closure element 4; and

when the slit 6 closes again after the pump has been actuated, the twobottom ends of the edges 61, 62 scrape over the convex surface of thenozzle 3, thereby cleaning said nozzle 3; this guarantees maximumexpulsion of any substance remaining in this place after each actuation.

Advantageously, it is possible to provide a bacteriostat between theclosure element 4 and the ejection nozzle element 3. In this way,maximum protection is obtained for the substance. By combining such abacteriostat with the above-described arcuate shape, it is possible toobtain the advantage that the bacteriostat is not delivered to the useron actuating the pump, because almost all of the substance remaining inthis place is removed during the preceding closure of the closureelement.

The above description is given with reference to a particularapplication of the invention concerning a spray dispenser deviceincluding a pump. Naturally, with the necessary modifications obvious tothe person skilled in the art, the closure device of the invention mayalso be implemented with different types of pump or with different typesof dispenser, such as, for example, dispensers for dispensing drops (inparticular medicated eye drops), pharmaceutical or cosmetic creams, andmore generally any other type of fluid. A preferred characteristic isthat all of such devices include suction systems preventing outside airfrom entering or returning into the fluid tank.

The closure element itself may also be modified without going beyond theambit of the invention. In particular, its slit-shaped opening may bereplaced with a very small hole capable of being enlarged sufficientlyto enable a fine tube to pass through it, in particular for dispensingdroplets. In which case, unlike the spray examples, an ejection nozzleincluding a swirl chamber for creating the spray is not necessary.Similarly, the deformable hollow cylindrical sleeve of the closureelement may be replaced by a mere disk made of an elastomer material forless constraining applications. Thus, for example, in anophthalmological application, the closure element may be implemented inthe form of such a disk provided with a hole. In the closed position,the hole is closed and closes the dispensing orifice of a dispensingtube in airtight manner. When the device is actuated, said dispensingtube deforms said disk so as to open said hole, thereby enabling saidtube to pass through said hole so as to deliver a drop of substance.After actuation, the tube is returned to its initial position, and thehole in the disk closes again automatically.

What is claimed is:
 1. A dispenser device comprising: a pump; anejection nozzle; a dispensing orifice incorporated into said ejectionnozzle; an actuator, said actuator displaced relative to the ejectionnozzle during dispensing; and a closure system disposed between saidactuator and said ejection nozzle, said closure system comprising aclosure element, said closure element resiliently deformable to gobetween a closed position in which said closure element hermeticallycloses the dispensing orifice, and an open position in which saidclosure element opens the dispensing orifice wherein, when thedispensing device is actuated, said closure element is deformed intosaid open position by said ejection nozzle or a member solid with saidejection nozzle, said closure element returning resiliently to saidclosed position after the dispensing device has been actuated.
 2. Adevice according to claim 1, in which the closure element comprises adeformable closure wall which closes the dispensing orifice, saidclosure wall containing opening means for allowing a dispensing mediumto expel outside the dispensing device when said closure element is inthe open position.
 3. A device according to claim 2, wherein saidopening means comprises a slit facing said dispensing orifice.
 4. Adevice according to claim 3, wherein said closure wall is provided witha substantially concave bottom surface which, when said closure elementis in the closed position, said closure wall is in contact with a convextop surface of the member solid with said ejection nozzle.
 5. A deviceaccording to claim 2, wherein said slit comprises two edges which moveapart during opening of the slit in a manner such as to form a truncatedcone when the closure element is in the open position, a small-diameterportion of said truncated cone being defined by respective bottom endsof said two edges, said bottom ends positioned with the dispensingorifice, so that when the slit closes, the two edges firstly come intomutual contact at said bottom ends, expelling outside any of saiddispensing medium remaining in the truncated cone after the dispenserdevice has been actuated.
 6. A device according to claim 5, wherein,while the slit is closing, said bottom ends of the two edges scrape saidconvex top surface of the member solid with said ejection nozzle,thereby removing said dispensing medium remaining after the dispenserdevice has been actuated.
 7. A device according to claim 1, wherein saidclosure element comprises a cylindrical sleeve disposed around and/orfixed to said ejection nozzle, and a deformable closure wall forming anend wall of said cylindrical sleeve, said closure wall being providedwith a slit facing the dispensing orifice, said slit opening when thedevice is actuated.
 8. A device according to claim 7, wherein, when theclosure element is in the open position, said sleeve is in a deformedstate so that the closure element is urged resiliently into the closedposition.
 9. A device according to claim 1, wherein said closure elementcomprises a disk provided with a hole.
 10. A device according to claim1, wherein said closure element is made of an elastomer.
 11. A deviceaccording to claim 10, wherein said elastomer is a butyl rubber.
 12. Adevice according to claim 3, wherein said closure wall is provided witha substantially concave bottom surface which, when said closure elementis in the closed position, said closure wall is in contact with a convextop surface of the ejection nozzle.
 13. A device according to claim 6,wherein a bacteriostat is disposed between said closure element and saidejection nozzle.